It is time the European Union and the United Nations did something concrete to stop the racist policies being carried out by the Italian institutions.

Milan, 28th May, 2009. Over the last few years the Italian institutions have been carrying out clear and serious violations of human rights which have been criticized by the European Commission and Council; the UNHCR; CERD; and the principal organizations working for the protection of minorities.

The sending back of refugees to Libya, the deportation of human beings fleeing from countries where humanitarian tragedies are underway; the camp clearances of Roma families from their makeshift shelters without the offer of alternative lodgings and assistance, are abuses of power which are going unpunished and making waste paper of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, the Geneva Convention, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the most important EU directives opposing racism and xenophobia. Italy, with its persecutory policies being carried out by xenophobic political parties that have now reached the top positions of power in Italy (and are at present working their way into the European Parliament) reveals the weaknesses of the EU institutions and those of the United Nations, who appear to lack the means to stop the abuses being perpetrated in the field of human rights. It is time to identify the means that will make the European directives effective, otherwise it is pointless to approve new ones.

It is time to oppose and make xenophobic and racist movements illegal – as they are in the United States. Movements that in this time of economic crisis are once again able to take root in EU Member States by exploiting people’s irrational fears. It is time to put a stop to these racial laws, otherwise the European Union will have failed to make any progress after the experience of the Holocaust. It is not sufficient just to “remember”: we have to take measures to change European civilization, saving it from the collapse of human, civil and moral values.

If no authoritative voice speaks out soon, the Italian institutions will soon approve law 733 on “public security”, which contains racist measures inspired by intolerance and cruelty. This decree is a series of racist laws, starting with the introduction of the crime of “illegal entry”, which transforms human beings fleeing from wars, persecution, famine and humanitarian tragedies into “anti-socials” to be arrested, imprisoned and expelled.

The EU directives 2004/83/CE and 2005/85/CE, however, ask Member States to evaluate not just a person’s right to asylum, but also his or her right to subsidiary international protection, which many people are entitled to if, when repatriated, they were to find themselves once more in the humanitarian dramas that they have fled from.

This new law has also increased the taxes for residency permits out of all proportion (from 80-200 euros) placing a burden on already socially weak families. In no way does the law tackle the real “security emergency” - the numerous attacks, often fatal, that are being carried out by Italians against immigrants and Roma; the setting fire to the shelters where Roma citizens and the homeless live; the episodes of summary justice against migrants and Roma following episodes of crime news exploited by the press and racist politicians.

Instead, the law will force immigrants to subscribe to a humiliating “integration agreement” (the Italians are spared from signing a “welcome agreement”): this is extremely discriminatory treatment which works against the possibility of a multicultural society. This “agreement” will give the foreigner a residency permit “with points”, a situation that will place him or her in a position of inferiority. Once all the points are lost (perhaps due an abuse of authority or a complaint lodged by a racist) the immigrant will be deprived of his residency permit.

The legislation also foresees a “homeless register”, a monitoring of the most vulnerable members of society - while no assistance programme for them is forthcoming. Why should we need records of human beings whose only sin is in finding themselves in a situation of hardship?

The law will oblige all citizens to report “clandestini” to the authorities, thus transforming the Italian people into a population of spies and informers. At the same time it will punish the organizations that promote tolerance, as the new legislation likens the support given to migrants to aiding and abetting the “crime of illegal entry”.

The law authorizes the enrolment of citizens to take part in the vigilante “patrols”. The government defines this “militia” as “unarmed citizens who will alert the authorities of crimes being committed”. But these “patrols” have actually existed since the 1990s and are made up of intolerant and racist members who have already made themselves known for setting fire to Roma settlements, for attacks on immigrants and punitive expeditions against homosexuals and the homeless. The same law arms these patrols, by making the sale of “pepper spray” legal.

The law does not aim to combat the cases of rape that take place in the privacy of the home, and which represent a very high percentage of the number of crimes of this kind. Neither does it aim to punish the rape (a frequent occurrence) of young girls and women forced to live without safe housing. Instead, it emphasises the number of rapes committed by foreigners. It allows the sale of pepper spray, foresees arrest “in flagrante delicto” and aggravating circumstances for assaults carried out “in open spaces” on the wave of cases exploited by racist propaganda (from Giovanna Reggiani’s murder to the rape in Caffarella park)”.

The legislation makes marriage between Italians and foreigners more complicated, foreseeing a period of two years before the foreigner can obtain Italian citizenship.

In spite of the European Union recently condemning those who exploit the labour of “irregular” migrants, the legislation (in order to protect the businessmen - who are the voters of the present government) does not punish those who profit unjustly from this situation. Instead, it will punish those who offer housing to “clandestine” migrants.

The law penalizes the foreigners who have been in Italy for some time but do not have sufficient knowledge of the Italian language (often due to discrimination). If they fail to pass an Italian exam, these people (despite being integrated into Italian society) will lose their residency permit. We must remember that some Jews taken in by Israel have spoken nothing but Yiddish for decades.

The legislation obliges foreigners to show their residency permits when they register births, marriages and deaths. For example, the right to recognise a child will depend on the possession of a residency permit. This part of the law will also hit those immigrants who send money home to their countries of origin, often allowing children and relatives to survive in places of poverty and desperation. The “money transfer” offices will have to ask for the migrants’ residency permits and report those who try to transfer money without one.

The law will allow immigrants to be detained in the “identification and expulsion centres” for up to six months. We must bear in mind that in the Italian CIEs the living conditions are similar to those in the concentration camps and suicide attempts and self-destructive behaviour are almost daily occurrences.

One very important fact to consider is that there is no “security emergency” linked to migrants and Roma in Italy, despite what the institutions and xenophobic press would have us believe. As the ISTAT reports and the figures from the Interior Ministry show, Italy (even before the Berlusconi Government) has one of the lowest number of crimes committed against the person in the world (in Europe it is placed second after Norway).

At the same time the number of crimes committed by Italians against migrants and the Roma is rising rapidly, as is the abuse (again towards foreigners) being carried out by the police force. We also have a soaring number of crimes committed by organized crime (‘Ndrangheta, Mafia and Camorra). When it comes to organized crime in Italy, we must point out that at the end of 2008 its turnover amounted to a record 130 billion euros in Italy and 500 billion euros throughout the world. This would lead us to wonder why - instead of punishing xenophobia, Mafia crimes and corruption with an emergency decree - the institutions have decided to pursue with greater intensity and cruelty the migrants, the Roma and the most vulnerable members of the population.

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